Resealable container

ABSTRACT

A container which has a neck portion defining the container opening. The neck portion includes an external thread for engagement by a screw-type cover and an annular bead for the alternative engagement by a snap-on lid. A recess extending in an axial direction of the container enables the quick release of the lid from its engagement with the annular bead by providing access to the lid for prying it loose.

2 States Patent inventor Kevin J. Howard San Francisco, Calif. Appl. No.820,810 Filed May 1,1969 Patented Jan. 19, 197 1 0 Assignee FlexiblePlastics Corporation San Francisco, Calif. a corporation ol'Calil'orniaRESEALABLE CONTAINER 9 Claims, 5 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 215/31, 215/41, 215/43 Int. Cl 865d 1/02, 865d 1 H04 FieldofSearch 215/31, 43,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,229,841 1/1966 Bailey 215/313,468,447 9/ i969 Smalley 215/31X Primary Examiner-George T. HallAttorney-Townsend and Townsend PATENTEUJANIQIQYI 3555334 I H l VENTQKEVIN J HOWARD FIG 3 BY m WM I RESEALABLE CONTAINER BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION This invention relates to closeable containers such as jars,bottles, etc., and more. particularly to containers permitting theiralternative closing by a snap-on lid or a screw-type cover.

Containers, and particularly wide-mouth containers such as jars, arepresently closed and sealed by-either a screw-type cover or by a snap-onlid. Both have certain advantages which dictate their use in particularapplications. As a result, container manufacturers and distributors muststock two sets of containers, the one set having an external thread. ora screw type finish, for engagement by a screw-type cover and the otherset having a finish for engaging snap-on lids.

The large scale use of containers requires manufacturers anddistributors to stock huge quantities. Inventory costs are burdensome,particularly since the quantity that must be stocked is virtuallydoubled by the'fact that two types of containers are'required to be onhand. 7

It is known to construct containers with a combination finishenablingthe use of both closures. Such containers provide an annularbead adjacent an end face of the container neck, followed by a grooveand by an external thread for engagement by a screw-type cover.The'snap-on lid is placed over the bead and securely retained to themouth of the container. It is constructed so that it permits theplacement of the screw cover thereon. Once the snap-on lid is in placeit is difficult to remove it since its exterior cannot be grasped.

Such combination finish containers are often employed for the storage ofspices and other food ingredients. They have a 7 wide mouth tofacilitate the, filling of .the containers and the snap-on lid includesopenings to enablethe dispensing of the container contents. Thus, thelid performs the function of a dispensing-unit while-the cover forms theactual closure for the container. If the snap-on'lid were the actualcontainer closure it would require special to'olsfto remove it. Ifremoved manually, the fingernails of the person attempting the removalbreak frequently. I

SUMMARY-0F rut-z invention The present invention provides a containerhaving a container finish which permits the alternative use of a snap-onlid or a screw-type cover. This enables the use of a single con- Itainer with either one of the two types of closures. Manufacturers anddistributors need only store one container whereas, in the past, twocontainers, each with a different finish, had to be held in inventory.Operating costs are thereby appreciably reduced.

In its broadest aspect the present invention comprises a containerhaving a hollow body and a tubular neck defining an access opening ormouth of the container. The neck terminates in an end face and includeson its exterior surface an annular bead, an external thread, a grooveintermediate the bead and the thread, and a recess extending in an axialdirection of the neck from adjacent the groove towards to the body.

To close the container with a screw cover the latter is engaged with theexternal 'neck thread as in the past. To close it with a snap-on lid thelatter isplaced, or snapped over the annular head so that an internalprotrusion of the lid is disposed in the groove and retains the formerto the container. The lid is removed by engaging it with an object or afinger placed in the recess and applying a force in an axial directionto thereby quickly and effortlessly separate the snap-on lid from thecontainer. Y

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The objects, features and advantagesof the present invention will be more apparent after referring to. thefollowing specification and accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a wide mouth container constructed according tothe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, enlarged CI'OSSrSECtIOIIflI view taken on line2-2 ofFlG. 1; e

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary. elevational view of the container il lustratedin FIG. I and shows the closing of the container with a snap-on lidillustrated partially in section;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but illustrates the closing of thecontainer with a screw-type cover shown in section; and I FIG. 5 is anenlarged, fragmentary elevational view, insection, of theinterengagement between the snap-on lid and the container.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring toFIGS. l and 2, acontainer 6 comprises a hollow body 8 having a closed end 10 and an openend 12. A tubular neck 14 extends from the body in alignment with openend 12, terminates at an end face 16 and defines the mouth of thecontainer.

The exterior of the neck is cylindrical and includes an annular bead orprotrusion I8 extending from adjacent end face 16 towards container body8 and an-external thread 20 spaced from the annular bead by a groove 22.The neck further includes a recess 24 which preferably has a depth, asmeasured from thread peaks 26 or from the annular bead, greater than thedepth of groove 22 and which extends in an axial direction of the neckfrom adjacent the groove, past threads 20 towards container body 8. Theneck may further include one or more ribs 30 for stiffening it andproviding a convenient grip.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, container 8 having a neck 14 constructed asdescribed in the proceeding paragraphs can be closed and sealed with asnap-on lid 32. The lid comprises a generally flat closure member 34placed across'the mouth of the neck and a cylindrically tubular skirt 36that depends from the closure member and includes an inwardly projectingannular projection 38. The closure member may include one or moreundulations 40 to impart rigidity to it or it can have a planarconfiguration.

The axial extent of skirt 36 is such that its lowermost edge 42 facingtowards container body 8 terminates at about the end of groove 22proximate the container body so that projection 38 is disposed in thegroove and interengages with annular bead l8 and secures the snap-on lidto the container neck. Although the outer periphery of the skirt canhave any desired shape it is preferred that it is cylindrical and has anouter diameter about equal to or less than the maximum diameter ofthread 20 as defined by thread peaks 26. This prevents accidentaldisengagement of the lid from neck 14 when foreign objects or articlesstrike the lower edge '42 of the skirt.

It will 'be observed that the snap-on lid, which is constructed of aflexible plastic such as polyethylene, is easily removable from thecontainer neck by inserting an object or a finger in recess 24 andapplying a force acting in an axial direction to lowermost edge 42 ofskirt 36. This disengages the lid from the container by prying annularprojection 38 off annular head 18. The lid is placed on the container bymerely positioning it over the container mouth and pushing the lidtowards container body 8 until annular projection 38 of skirt 36 snapsover the annular bead and thereby firmly interconnects the lid and thecontainer.

To provide sufficient space in recess 24 to allow the manual removal ofthe snap-on lid the recess has a width, in the direction of the thread,of at least about three-eighths inch. In addition to prevent anexcessive discontinuity of the thread caused by the recess the width ofthe latter is preferably no greater than about 1% inches. In thepresently preferred embodiment one recess is provided. If desired two ormore spaced apart recesses (not shown) can be formed in neck 14.

As is well known to those skilled in the art, the annular bead I8,annular projection 38 on skirt 36, and the recess in the skirt betweenprojection 38 and closure member 34 can be constructed to form a sealbetween closure member 34 and end face 16 or between the annular beadand the recess in the skirt. The detailed construction is therefore notfurther described herein.

Referring to H65. 2 and 4, instead of closing container 6 with thesnap-on lid illustrated in FIG. 3 it can be closed with a screw-typecover 44. The cover comprises a generally flat closure member 46 placedacross the mouth of neck 14 and a downwardly extending skirt 48 definingan interior thread 50 formed to be engageable with the exterior thread20 on the container neck. Cover 44 is preferably constructed of metalfor durability but can be equally successfully constructed of athermosetting or a thermoplastic material. The cover includes a gasket52 to seal the cover and end face 16 of the container neck.

Thread 20 is formed on the neck exterior so that its end proximate neckend face 16 is substantially tangent to groove 22. interior thread 50 inskirt 48 is so positioned that when it engages the external neck threadgasket 52 is biased against neck end face 16 and forms a seal therewith.Thread 20 terminates at recess 24 so that it extends over an arc of 360less the width or arc of the recess. Ordinarily this provides sufficientthread engagement. Should particular applications require a threadengagement of more than 360 the thread 20 can be continued (not shown)on the other side of the recess.

Standard screw-type covers are in widespread use and are constructed tofit with neck threads or finish dimensions established and published in1968 by the Standard and Testing Procedures Committee" of the Society ofthe Plastics industry, lnc.. 250 Park Avenue, New York. New York ll7. ina technical bulletin entitled Dimensional Standards for PlasticBottles." When thread is constructed and positioned according to thepublished standards the theoretical thread end proximate neck end face16 is normally positioned within groove 22 since the maximum distancebetween the thread end and the end face is less than one-eighth inch. Tonarrow the groove width sufficiently to fully accommodate the thread endwould require a narrowing of annular protrusion 38 on lid 32 to such anextent that it is too weak to effectively retain the snap-on lid to thecontainer.

To provide the groove with sufficient width to accommodate annularprotrusion 38 of lid 32, particularly on wide mouth containers havingneck diameters of up to 120 mm., the groove has a width of at leastabout one-sixteenth inch and preferably a width of about one-eighthinch. The spacing between end face 16 and the side of the groove definedby thread 20 should not exceed about threesixteenths to about one-fourthinch. As a result of such a groove width and posi tion, the thread endproximate neck face 16 is spaced from the neck face a greater distancethan the standard distance. How ever, by maintaining the recommendeddimensions standard screw-type covers dimensioned to the above-referredto standards can, nevertheless. be used for closing containersconstructed according to the present invention since theaboverecommended dimensions and positions of the groove and thebeginning of the thread assure sufficient thread engagement between thecover and the neck.

Widely available and inexpensive standard screw covers can be thus usedfor closing containers constructed according to the present invention.Additional tooling. manufacturing and inventory costs from requiringspecially designed screw covers are thereby eliminated to increase theeconomy afforded by the containers of the present invention.

By virtue of the present invention a manufacturer or distributor ofcontainers need only stock one container for each given size and shapewithout regard to the required closure type. In addition, he stocks thesame inventory of standard snap-on lids and screw-type covers as he hasin the past.

While one embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, itwill be obvious that other adaptations and modifications can be madewithout departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention. Forexample. the containers can be constructed for use with a snap-on lidonly in which case it would be unnecessary to provide the container neckwith a thread.

lclaim:

l. A container comprising an open-ended. hollow body terminating in asubstantially cylindrical neck. the neck having an end face, anoutwardly extending annular protrusion ad jacent the face. an annulargroove recessed from an exterior surface of the neck and disposedon theside of the protrusion facing towards the container. the neck furtherhaving a depression extending from adja entthe annular protrusiontowards the remainder of the container and below the exterior necksurface. whereby snap-on lids can be placed over the annular protrusionand manually removed therefrom by engaging a portion of the lidoverlying the depression.

2. A container according to claim 1 wherein the exterior neck surfaceincludes a thread disposed between the groove and the remainder of thecontainer, and wherein the width of the depression in the direction ofthe thread is between about three-eighths to about I inches.

3. A resealable container adapted to alternatively receive a snap-on lidor a screw-on cover, the container comprising: a hollow body having aclosed and an open end. and a neck portion extending from the body anddefining the open end of the container, the neck having a cylindricalexterior and an end face. an external thread spaced from the end face.an annular bead intermediate the end face and the thread and projectingradially outward from the exterior surface of the neck. and a recessextending from adjacent the bead towards the body and over an aresubstantially less than 360. whereby a snap-on lid can be applied to theneck by engaging the lid with the annular bead and whereby the lid ismanually removable from the neck by grasping an edge of the lid disposedadjacent the recess to forcibly separate the lid from the neck.

4. A container according to claim 3 wherein the recess extends in anaxial direction of the container past the end of the :thread closest tothe container body.

5. A container according to claim 3 including an annular grooveof asubstantially constant cross section between the annular bead and thethread, and wherein the recess extends below a bottom of the groove.

6. A resealable container for alternative use with screw-type covers andsnap-on lids comprising: a main container body having an openingtherein, and a tubular neck defining the opening and aligned therewith,the neck terminating in an end face and having an external thread forengagement by the cover, the thread being positioned with respect to theend face so that it is engageable by standardized covers requiring apredetermined spacing between an end of the thread proximate the endface and the end face. the neck further including an annular protrusionintermediate the end face and the thread and an annular grooveintermediate the protrusion and the thread. adjacent portions of thethread being discontinued in the direction of the axis of the openingand over a thread length substantially less than the total thread lengthto provide access to the groove along the exterior of the neck whereby asnap-on lid placed over the neck opening and engaged by the annularprotrusion is manually removable from the container by applying a forceto an edge of the snap-on lid overlying the discontinuity of the thread.

I. Asc'rew-top container adapted to receive a quick release. sealingsnap-on lid having a closure member and a tubular,

- cylindrically shaped skirt depending from the periphery of the closuremember, the skirt including an inwardly extending annular projectionspaced from the closure member, the container comprising: a hollow bodyand a tubular neck extending from the body and defining an opening ofthe container, the tubular neck including an end face, an annular beadon the periphery of the neck and positioned to be disposed intermediatethe closure member and the annular projection when the snap-on lid isplaced over the opening to thereby retain the snap-on lid to the neckand seal the opening. the neck further including an external threadspaced from the annular bead to form a groove between the thread and thebead for placement of the annular projection therein, the thread beingformed for engagement by a screw-type cover to enable the alternativeclosing of the container with the cover, the neck further ineluding arecess terminating at the. groove and extending along the exteriorof theneck towards a remainder of the container to define a discontinuity ofthe thread and provide access to the skirt along the recess whenthe lidis engaged by the bead 9. A container according to claim 7 wherein thegroove has a width of between about one-sixteenth inch to aboutoneeighth inch, and wherein the spacing between the end face and an endof the thread proximate the end face is no more than about one-fourthinch. whereby a cover standardized for a predetermined distance betweenthe end face and the proximate thread end, the distance being less thanone-fourth inch, is engageable with the thread for the closing of thecontainers with a standardized cover.

1. A container comprising an open-ended, hollow body terminating in asubstantially cylindrical neck, the neck having an end face, anoutwardly extending annular protrusion adjacent the face, an annulargroove recessed from an exterior surface of the neck and disposed on theside of the protrusion facing towards the container, the neck furtherhaving a depression extending from adjacent the annular protrusiontowards the remainder of the container and below the exterior necksurface, whereby snap-on lids can be placed over the annular protrusionand manually removed therefrom by engaging a portion of the lidoverlying the depression.
 2. A container according to claim 1 whereinthe exterior neck surface includes a thread disposed between the grooveand the remainder of the container, and wherein the width of thedepression in the direction of the thread is between about three-eighthsto about 1 1/2 inches.
 3. A resealable container adapted toalternatively receive a snap-on lid or a screw-on cover, the containercomprising: a hollow body having a closed and an open end, and a neckportion extending from the body and defining the open end of thecontainer, the neck having a cylindrical exterior and an end face, anexternal thread spaced from the end face, an annular bead intermediatethe end face and the thread and projecting radially outward from theexterior surface of the neck, and a recess extending from adjacent thebead towards the body and over an arc substantially less than 360*,whereby a snap-on lid can be applied to the neck by engaging the lidwith the annular bead and whereby the lid is manually removable from theneck by grasping an edge of the lid disposed adjacent the recess toforcibly separate the lid from the neck.
 4. A container according toclaim 3 wherein the recess extends in an axial direction of thecontainer past the end of the thread closest to the container body.
 5. Acontainer according to claim 3 including an annular groove of asubstantially constant cross section between the annular bead and thethread, and wherein the recess extends below a bottom of the groove. 6.A resealable container for alternative use with screw-type covers andsnap-on lids comprising: a main container body having an openingtherein, and a tubular neck defining the opening and aligned therewith,the neck terminating in an end face and having an external thread forengagement by the cover, the thread being positioned with respect to theend face so that it is engageable by standardized covers requiring apredetermined spacing between an end of the thread proximate the endface and the end face, the neck further including an annular protrusionintermediate the end face and the thread and an annular grooveintermediate the protrusion and the thread, adjacent portions of thethread being discontinued in the direction of the axis of the openingand over a thread length substAntially less than the total thread lengthto provide access to the groove along the exterior of the neck whereby asnap-on lid placed over the neck opening and engaged by the annularprotrusion is manually removable from the container by applying a forceto an edge of the snap-on lid overlying the discontinuity of the thread.7. A screw-top container adapted to receive a quick release, sealingsnap-on lid having a closure member and a tubular, cylindrically shapedskirt depending from the periphery of the closure member, the skirtincluding an inwardly extending annular projection spaced from theclosure member, the container comprising: a hollow body and a tubularneck extending from the body and defining an opening of the container,the tubular neck including an end face, an annular bead on the peripheryof the neck and positioned to be disposed intermediate the closuremember and the annular projection when the snap-on lid is placed overthe opening to thereby retain the snap-on lid to the neck and seal theopening, the neck further including an external thread spaced from theannular bead to form a groove between the thread and the bead forplacement of the annular projection therein, the thread being formed forengagement by a screw-type cover to enable the alternative closing ofthe container with the cover, the neck further including a recessterminating at the groove and extending along the exterior of the necktowards a remainder of the container to define a discontinuity of thethread and provide access to the skirt along the recess when the lid isengaged by the bead to facilitate the removal of the snap-on lid byengaging an edge of the skirt portion proximate the recess and pry thesnap-on lid off the bead.
 8. A container according to claim 7 wherein adepth of the recess measured from peaks of the threads is greater than adepth of the groove measured from peaks of the thread to enable theengagement of the full edge surface of the skirt.
 9. A containeraccording to claim 7 wherein the groove has a width of between aboutone-sixteenth inch to about one-eighth inch, and wherein the spacingbetween the end face and an end of the thread proximate the end face isno more than about one-fourth inch, whereby a cover standardized for apredetermined distance between the end face and the proximate threadend, the distance being less than one-fourth inch, is engageable withthe thread for the closing of the containers with a standardized cover.